WORDS, WORDS, WORDS – As 2016 is about to end, Oxford and Merriam-Webster dictionaries come up with their words of the year.
For Oxford, it’s “post-truth,” meaning objective facts are far less influential than appeals to emotion. People continue to be superstitious and prone to prejudice (and pride) instead of sticking to the truth.
For Merriam-Webster, it’s “surreal,” defined as marked by the intense irrationality of a dream,” derived from the artistic movement called “surrealism.”
Oxford’s second word of the year is “zenophobia.”
Other words which are on Merriam-Webster list:
Bigly (big league), feckless, assumpsit revenant (think Leonardo Dicaprio’s “The Revenant”), irregardless.
By the way, new words in Oxford are: Brexit (withdrawal of Great Britain to the European Union), Grexit (potential Greek exit from EU), gla-ma (glamorous grandmother), YouTuber (producer of material for the video-sharing website), verklempt (overwhelmed), get your freak on (exuberant sex or dancing).
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MORE, MORE, MORE – In a sermon, Pope Francis used the word “coprophagia,” meaning “consumption of feces.” The beloved and popular Pope warned that media should not fall to the vice or coprophilia, always wanting to communicate ugly things. He said people have a tendency towards the sickness of coprophagria, which can do great harm.
Junk journalism, while not outright fake, focuses on some facts and omit or downplay other facts. Selective reporting.
President Duterte’s apologized for his bad words, “son of a bitch,” “f*** you,” “pu**** ina.” He describes his enemies (real, potential, imaginary) as “fool,” “stupid,” “crazy.”
And there’s this foulmouth-loudmouth who used the words “f*** idiot.” Must be a self-description.
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LITTLE PRINCESS – From Mel Caparas this item on young beauty queens.
Liza Sofia Hansen of Cordova City, Cebu was crowned Little Princess Philippines 2016 during the coronation night held at the Ballroom of Eurotel Hotel, North EDSA. She will be representing the Philippines in the 2017 Princess International Pageant.
Her court includes:
Juliana Torres (Tarlac City) – 1st Runner-up
Shirleena Joice Espinoza (Olongapo City) – 2nd Runner-up
Precious Faith Astrero (Isabela City) – Little Princess Luzon
Mary Reign Fernandez (Cebu City) – Little Princess Visayas
Little & Teen Princess of the Philippines is produced by Glamore Productions Co. headed by its CEO Mrs. Asia Pacific 2016 Kristine Diane Nagasaka and Operations Manager Maria Angela Aris.